A river and mountains.

Trump administration responds to criticism about continued work on Arctic drilling during shutdown

The Interior department has responded to questions from a Democratic Congressman about its continued work to advance oil development in Alaska during the partial government shutdown.

Alaska gasline project board ousts its $1 million man

The state’s highest paid employee was fired from $45 billion gas line project today.

Fairbanks’ famously severe cold snaps are getting less cold and more rare

Over the last 80-some years, there’s been a noticeable change in Fairbanks: The more recent cold snaps haven’t been as cold, and they’re occurring less frequently than they used to.

New salmon-counting technique treats Alaska stream like a crime scene

Oregon State University Professor Taal Levi has spent the past several years exploring whether a new technology called environmental DNA, or eDNA, can be used to count salmon.

Amid environmental grief, finding hope in a graveyard of yellow cedar

One ecologist wonders, for the yellow cedar forests and the people who care about them, what comes after climate change and environmental loss in Southeast Alaska?
Caribou graze on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, with snowcapped peaks of the Brooks Range as a backdrop. (USFWS)

Despite shutdown, Trump administration continues work to begin oil drilling in ANWR

As the partial government shutdown drags on, the Trump administration is making sure some Interior Department employees continue work on one of its biggest, most controversial priorities: opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling.

2018 second warmest year on record for Bethel

Climate changes are hitting home in many ways: the Kuskokwim 300 sled dog race had to make a last-minute route change, and the Kuskokwim River is taking longer to freeze, so more residents in remote Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta communities have to travel by air instead.

Alaska Made: There’s only one Christmas tree farm in Alaska. It’s on Kodiak, and it’s thriving.

Many of the favorite commercial decorative species don’t grow naturally this far north. So a family of Kodiak farmers decided to take on the challenge.

State gasline corporation to miss key deadline with Chinese partners

Alaska Gasline Development Corporation is pushing for a six-month extension on negotiations with three Chinese partners interested in the Alaska LNG project.

Anchorage earthquake put new mapping tool to the test

The Nov. 30 Anchorage earthquake was one of the first big tests of a new computer model aimed at quickly estimating how significant landslides and other ground failures will be following an earthquake.

New Alaska wildlife managers could revive old fights over federal protections, bear- and wolf-killing

Dunleavy’s administration is likely to shift the complex dynamics between the different entities and interests involved in Alaska’s fish and wildlife politics – from the state and federal governments to tribes, hunting organizations and fishing groups.

Winter Solstice Sunrise 2018

Watch the sun rise over Anchorage on Dec. 21, 2018, the shortest day of the year.

What does the Dunleavy administration mean for the proposed Pebble Mine?

Officially, Gov. Mike Dunleavy is not taking a position on the mine, unlike his predecessor, Gov. Bill Walker, who opposed it. But the new governor is already making moves that have encouraged the mine’s backers and worried its opponents.

Donlin Gold signs major wetland mitigation agreement

The company is trying to develop one of the biggest gold mines in the world in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. The mine, if built, would disturb 2,800 acres of wetlands. Because Donlin can’t restore all of those wetlands, it is required to protect wetlands somewhere else.
A river and mountains.

Trump administration takes next step towards oil lease sales in ANWR

One year after Congress voted to allow oil development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the Trump administration has taken another step towards making it happen.

Adding insulation to the outside of your home? Watch out for mold.

At the Cold Climate Housing Research Center in Fairbanks, there’s an experiment underway to try to find a cheaper way to make that kind of retrofit while still keeping risk of mold low.

Environmental groups sue Trump administration to halt Arctic drilling project

A coalition of environmental groups are suing the Trump administration to challenge what would be the first oil production facility in Arctic federal waters, claiming the federal government's analysis leading to its approval was faulty.
Seen from a distance, an oil rig blips above the horizon in an otherwise flat, snowy landscape.

This winter, a major oil exploration effort is happening in a familiar place: Prudhoe Bay

BP is undertaking a massive effort to get the clearest picture yet of what the Prudhoe Bay oil field looks like. The idea is that, after all these years, there’s more oil at Prudhoe Bay to drill, but it’s in smaller, harder-to-find pockets.

Arctic Report Card: 2018 was the Arctic’s second-warmest year on record

The document looks at seven big categories — the Arctic’s so-called “vital signs.” Those include things like snow cover, the condition of the Greenland ice sheet, and sea ice conditions.

State and police investigating accident that led to North Slope worker’s death

According to the North Slope Borough chief of police Jeffrey Brown, Shawn Huber died in an accident at the Milne Point facility on Friday, December 7. Huber was 36.